Francesca's Holdings Terminates Employment of CFO Gene Morphis Following Board Investigation of His Use of Social Media
May 14 2012 - 7:00AM
Search Underway For New CFO; Cynthia
Thomassee To Serve As Interim CFO
Expects To Report Q1 Same Store Sales
Above Prior Guidance; Raises Q1 EPS Guidance To
$0.17-$0.18
HOUSTON, May 14, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Francesca's
Holdings Corporation (Nasdaq:FRAN) today announced that it has
terminated for cause the employment of Chief Financial Officer Gene
Morphis, based on an investigation by the Board of Directors with
the assistance of outside counsel, which has found that he
improperly communicated Company information through social media.
The investigation was launched after the Company discovered this
activity on May 11, 2012.
A search for a new Chief Financial Officer is
underway. Cynthia Thomassee, Francesca's Controller since 2007
and Vice President of Accounting since 2010, will serve as Interim
Chief Financial Officer.
The Company also announced today that it expects to report same
store sales for the fiscal first quarter ended April 28, 2012 above
its previously announced guidance and, as a result, Francesca's is
raising its earnings per diluted share guidance from
$0.14-$0.15 to $0.17-$0.18. The Company will
announce first quarter results on June 7, 2012, at which time it
will host a conference call for the investment community.
Greg Brenneman, Chairman of the Board of Directors, said,
"Francesca's has delivered consistent, high-quality results for
customers and public investors. We are disappointed by this
situation but we expect our executives to comply with all Company
policies. We acted immediately on Friday afternoon when we
first became aware of the matter and have moved swiftly to replace
Mr. Morphis based on the findings of the investigation. We
appreciate Cindy stepping into the CFO role on an interim basis as
we conduct a search for a permanent replacement."
John De Meritt, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated,
"As evidenced by today's sales and earnings update, Francesca's
continues to perform well. We are confident in the trajectory
of the Company and believe our merchandising strategy and
differentiated shopping experience will help us to continue to
deliver strong financial performance."
About Francesca's Holdings Corporation
Francesca's Collections is a growing specialty retailer with
retail locations designed and merchandised to feel like
independently owned, upscale boutiques providing customers a fun
and differentiated shopping experience. The merchandise assortment
is a diverse and uniquely balanced mix of high-quality, trend-right
apparel, jewelry, accessories and gifts at attractive prices.
Francesca's Collections appeals to the 18-35 year-old, fashion
conscious, female customer, although the Company finds that women
of all ages are attracted to the eclectic and sophisticated
merchandise selection and boutique setting. Francesca's
Collections' boutiques carry a broad selection but limited
quantities of individual styles and new merchandise is introduced
five days a week.
Additional Information
For additional information on Francesca's, please visit
www.francescas.com.
Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements in this release are "forward-looking
statements" made pursuant to the safe-harbor provisions of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such
forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current
expectations or beliefs concerning future events and are subject to
various risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to
differ materially from those that we expected, including: possible
adverse changes in general economic conditions and their impact on
consumer confidence and spending; possible inability to predict and
respond in a timely manner to changes in consumer demand; possible
loss of key management or inability to attract and retain the
talent required for our business; possible inability to maintain
and enhance our brand; possible inability to successfully implement
our growth strategies or manage our growing business; possible
inability to successfully open new boutiques as planned; and
possible inability to sustain levels of comparable-boutique sales.
For a discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those
contained in our forward-looking statements, please refer to "Risk
Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year
ended January 28, 2012. We undertake no obligation to publicly
update or revise any forward-looking statement.
CONTACT: Investors/Media
ICR, Inc.
Jean Fontana/Joseph Teklits
203-682-8200
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